Astari
Known for their great wisdom, spirituality, and foresight, the Astari are one of the elder races in Innaveria. Created by the goddess Nimue, these starfallen creatures are burdened with the ability to peer into the Tapestry of Fate - threads of the Grand Design. This gift allows them to gaze into the past, present, and the many possibilities of the future. They are a gentle, soft-spoken, and polite people, carefully guiding kingdoms, other races, and history itself with their precognitive powers. They make their homes in Zintil, a land eternally draped in night and starlight. Many Astari, however, venture far from their homelands to serve as counselors and seers to foreign lords. Physiology Astari are not born - they once live suspended among the stars, watching over the world and the fate's tapestry. When the Grand Design ordains that they are to serve in an earthbound form, they are flung from the sky, plunging into the earth like falling stars. They awake in their mortal coil possessing all the wisdom and knowledge they had gathered as sidereal observers. The children of the stars are blessed with an unearthly, celestial beauty. They are a tall people, with powerful and statuesque physiques. Their hair resemble and reflect the colors of a shimmering nebula and their eyes gleam like captured starlight. Glowing marks that resemble constellations adorn their iridescent pale blue skin. These marks flare up when the Astari use their divination abilities or cast spells. The Astari enjoy a natural resistance to harmful magic, believed to be an effect of their marks and strong connection with fate. It is often said that spells slide off Astari like so many drops of water. Instinctively, they keenly feel the warps, wefts, and weaves of fate and the movements of celestial bodies. Though the starfallen can live for centuries, time does not manifest its passing upon their bodies, untouched by the frailties of age and common diseases. Poison, inebriation, drugs, and magic-inflicted ailments can still affect them. The Astari are a nocturnal people. Daylight weakens their connection to the stars, blurring their vision, and causing them to feel less powerful and perceptive. When the night falls, they feel revitalized. Astari have midnight blue blood. When an Astari dies, their corpse stays for a brief period before disintegrating into flecks of starlight, returning to the sky from whence they fell. Life Cycle The Astari enter different stages in their lifetime, not measured in years, but spiritual enlightenment. At every stage, their constellation marks shift according to their actions, contributions, and vocation. * Star - Incorporeal and bodiless, the Astari begins its life as a luminous sphere of energy in the firmament. They soon develop an awareness, amassing knowledge and memories from the Tapestry of Fate. In this phase, they "dream" about various subjects such as the history of the world, the language and culture of the Astari, the nature of gods, and everything they need to know to survive the unforgiving world of mortals. Few remember their time as sidereal observers, but some can hazily recall having lived among the stars, watching over the world as destiny ran its course. * Lucent '''- After a period spent as a Star, the Tapestry establishes when the Astari is ready to be sent into Innaveria. Within the light, they gradually form a physical body. They are plucked from their celestial dwelling, and fall from the sky like a scintillating comet. The Lucent wakes into a strange world, retaining knowledge they had obtained in their stellar form, all the while getting used to a new ungainly body. A compulsion guides them to journey towards the Astari homeland, Zintil. There, the Lucent begins their mentorship and training, honing their skills as seers, studying a craft, or learning self-defense, such as martial arts, weapons, or magic, if they are born with the gift. The Lucent seeks its calling - a purpose and role in the grand design of things. * '''Beacon - When an Astari finds their calling and begins their journey to attain spiritual awakening, they become a Beacon, sometimes called "Younger". This journey could mean anything from starting a long and arduous pilgrimage, choosing a vocation, or mastering a school of martial arts. Many Beacons find themselves in foreign soil, counseling foreign lords. It is not uncommon for Beacons to remain in Zintil, mentoring the Lucents. * Luminary - Luminaries are Astari who have achieved their purpose in the Grand Design. They are the most enlightened of the starfallen, dispensing wisdom from centuries of experience. Their abilities as seers are unmatched, and as a result, they lose their physical eyesight, as they find themselves no longer in need of it. They are deeply revered, becoming sages and leaders of the nation. At any time they feel that their business in Innaveria is concluded, they can choose to depart from the mortal world, returning to the stars. This process is called "exaltation" where they once again become watchers of the Tapestry of Fate. Psychology Though personalities vary greatly, Astari are generally seen by other races as gentle, wise, and well-mannered. They are known to be extraordinarily patient and far-seeing. It is not uncommon for Astari, especially Luminaries, to make decisions that at the time seem incomprehensible and ludicrous, only for such carefully-laid plans to pay off as they predicted decades or even centuries later. The Astari are exceedingly polite, almost to a fault. When speaking with strangers and acquaintances, they would never refer to themselves in the first person - doing so is considered self-important, as they believe that all are but a small part in the Grand Design. Instead they refer to themselves as "this one" or "this servant". Most Astari are pacifists, preferring to resolve disputes through diplomacy rather than violence, unless necessary. Soft-spoken though they are, the Astari can readily defend themselves with ferocity should a need arise. Even when engaged in battle, they maintain a courteous facade. It is customary for Astari to say, "Find serenity in the Grand Design" before or after the take away any life. The Astari are a deeply spiritual people, seeking to unravel the mysteries of fate through meditation or communion with the stars. They are fervently devoted to the concept of the Grand Design, and will have little dealings with creatures that can disturb its perfection, such as Shedim or the Unshaped. (write something about spirituality, "all is one", communion with stars, and the Grand Design). Society The Astari's laws and orderly social structure revolve heavily around the concept of the Grand Design. The Luminaries codify these laws, and the Beacons enforce them. The bio-luminescent constellation marks on their bodies and faces display their actions, achievements, and vocations, and only Astari or those capable of deciphering celestial portents can read what the marks represent. These marks speak for their standing in their society. They can easily discern what manner of man their fellow Astari is by reading their astral marks as if they were an open book. Because of this transparency, crime is almost non-existent in their society. Those who commit transgressions (such as agents of the All-Seeing Eye) usually wear clothes or pieces of jewelry that conceal incriminating marks. Some avoid Astari communities altogether. Though the Astari are extraordinarily patient, some Lucents feel a considerable burden when they do not discover their calling after several centuries. Religion Aside from the All-Mother, the starfallen worship Nimue, the Rau'n of Fate, who gave breath to their form. They revere Tala, the Rau'n of Stars, who taught them astromancy and divination. The Astari believe that 'all is one', that everything in and of Innaveria is an aspect of a greater whole. They follow the doctrine of the Chantric Vedas: that Mother has a plan for the world, and as such desiring to see such a plan fulfilled. They see themselves as protectors of Her will by preserving the purity of the Tapestry of Fate. Because of these beliefs, they advocate unity among all races. Their founding of the Chantry is an attempt for unification. Among all the races, Astari also have the most dealings with the gods and Bran Vaal itself. Factions Starseekers - Scouting parties that search for newly fallen Astari and harvest Scintillium from meteorites. Use advanced tracking divination spells. Equipped to fight slavers. Celestial Compact - A collective of far-seers, luminaries, and astronomers. They see divination as a science. Massive observatories. Hand of Fate - A monastic order of Grand Design supremacists. Trained in martial arts. Memorizes 2,000 sutras. Slays shedim and unshaped on sight. Distrusts sorcerers. All-Seeing Eye - A mysterious cabal led by an unknown Astari simply called the "Eye". Shadowy information brokers. They sell information to the highest bidders. Interacts with other intelligence agencies. Speaks with clients through scrying mirrors, masked. Harbingers - Traveling doomsayers. When they're in an area, it means people are going to die or misfortune will strike the place. Scintillium Scintillium or starglass is a special mineral that can be mined from meteorites that land on Innaveria. When forged into weapons, armor, or accessories, the surface reflects a glimmering galaxy. Scintillium weapons are prized possessions of Astari warriors. The strength and power of a starglass weapon bank on its history and its past wielders. The starglass remembers its former owners' expertise in battle and fighting techniques. The weapon can show these to its new wielder through flashbacks or gradually imbuing them with muscle memory. Most scintillium weapons are named and enshrined in a temple vault in Steladris. A qualified warrior has to find the weapon that "calls" to her, and bond with it first, before they are able to access its powers. Weapons of Zintil's most illustrious warriors are considered legendary artifacts. Divination tools crafted from Scintillium, like scrying mirrors and crystal balls, are also prized. Lexicon * Beacon of Anvil - Blacksmith * Beacon of Blades - Swordsman * Beacon of Faith - Priests, Chantry Songstresses, Monks * Beacon of Fists - Martial Artists * Beacon of Journeys - Pilgrim * Beacon of Knowledge - Teacher * Beacon of Letters - Scribe * Beacon of Secrets - Information Broker * Beacon of Songs - Bard, Minstrel * Beacon of Stars - Astronomer, Astromancer * Beacon of Sustenance - Farmer, Rancher * Beacon of the Hunt - Hunter * Beacon of the Loom - Tailor, Seamstress History First Dawn * Once upon a time, we were but stars watching over the world. We watched with everlasting patience as Mother and the Rau'n brought shape and order into reality. We watched as Nimue wove eternally at the loom of destiny. * At the dawn of the mortal races, Mother provided us a physical form, and Nimue wove us into it. The world marveled as a grand shower of a thousand falling stars set Innaveria alight. * We first awoke in Zintil, possessing the wisdom and knowledge to survive the treacherous wilderness. We looked to the stars for guidance as we built our first villages, gathered and hunted that we may never go hungry, and fought wild beasts that lurked and prowled in the lands of eternal night. * Once, we were as disparate as the other less enlightened races, divided into primitive clans, each with their own way to decipher and control the inner workings of fate. Some clans kept on watching the stars for celestial portents. Others saw fate in crude mirrors and crystals. A few turned to casting runes, bones, and even animal entrails to gain prophetic understanding. * Yet, we are a people of peace and we shared a single language. Instead of fighting one another over our differences, we sought to understand. Instead of hoarding resources, we traded freely. Soon, we convened and combined our ways into one, and we became a single people. We called ourselves the Astari, children of the stars. * Through the guidance of our Luminaries and the arch-prophets, we built the scintillating city of Steladris. * We knew that they would come one day - a majestic, winged people wiser, fairer, and more powerful than we. The Inadri offered peace and wonders unimaginable in exchange for our counsel and foresight. It was our destiny to accept. Sundered Morning Golden Zenith Ashen Dusk Blood Nadir Forlorn Twilight Second Dawn = Category:Races